Gary Portman 
The best ulu for most kitchens is The Ulu Factory’s Alaskan Ulu: a 6-inch stainless crescent blade with a wooden handle above it, made in Anchorage. You press it down and rock it instead of sawing back and forth, which … Read more
A kukri looks like a knife that’s been bent forward. The blade drops below the handle and widens toward the tip, so most of its weight sits out in front of your hand. Swing it and that weight does the … Read more
A butcher knife isn’t a cleaver. It’s a long, curved blade for slicing through big pieces of raw meat in one sweeping stroke: splitting a brisket, portioning a pork loin, cutting steaks from a strip loin. My pick for most … Read more
Before you sharpen a Cutco knife, look closely at its edge. Cutco makes two kinds. Straight-edge knives, like the chef’s knives, santoku and paring knives, sharpen like any other kitchen knife. Double-D knives have a pattern of tiny recessed scallops … Read more
Case knives are good if you want a traditional American pocket knife: bone or synthetic handles, two or three blades, no clip, no lock on most models, made in Bradford, Pennsylvania. They’re not the brand for someone who wants a … Read more
Opinel knives are good, and the plain Opinel No.08 is one of the best knives you can buy for very little money. It’s a simple French folder with a thin, very sharp blade, a beech handle and a twisting lock … Read more
Yes, Mora knives are good, and the cheapest one is the one I’d buy first: the Morakniv Companion. It costs very little, carves wood better than far heavier knives, and if you lose it in the leaves you shrug and … Read more
Benchmade sits in an awkward spot for most buyers. Its knives cost much more than a Kershaw or a Buck, yet many people see the same Grivory plastic handles on them and wonder where the money goes. The answer is … Read more
The first time most people see a Spyderco, they think it looks strange: a hump on the spine, a big round hole in the blade, a handle shaped around your fingers instead of a straight bar. Then they use one, … Read more
Kershaw is the brand most people buy their first decent pocket knife from, and that’s no accident. It makes good knives at almost every price, from cheap imported workhorses to American-made folders with premium steel. The catch is that quality … Read more